Potful of Green Edibles

Did you know? Many edible plants can be grown in pots! This makes make them suitable for small home gardens in urban spaces where true ground may not be available.

Getting the right pot size and type is important to keep your plants healthy, so let’s learn more about such pots and how to choose the best one for your edible plants.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Different kinds of plants will need pots of different sizes to contain the amount of soil to cater adequately for the plant roots. Because soil can “hold” water, the amount of soil in a pot will also determine how much water is available to a plant.

Generally, small pots are suitable for plants with shallow roots.

As a rule of thumb, larger pots are better for taller or thirstier plants. But leafy vegetables like lettuce, Bayam, Xiao Bai Cai and Cai Xin have shallow roots, so pots that are 10 to 15 cm deep are enough for them to grow.

Deeper pots are able to support larger plants that tend to have large root balls to keep the plant upright.

Fruiting vegetables and herbs with woody stems, like Lady’s Fingers, Eggplants, Basil and Rosemary are much larger than leafy vegetables, and thus also have larger root balls to keep the plant upright.

They do best in pots that are 15 to 30 cm deep, with deeper pots being able to support larger plants.

Use bigger pots for fruiting climbers. You can also attach physical supports in these pots for the plants to climb on.
Fruiting climbers, like Cucumbers, Bitter Gourds and Long Beans have very large root systems as the vines of the plants are supported by water pressure rather than woody stems.

This means they will need pots that are at least 50 cm deep. These large, deep pots also help stabilise the plants as they climb. Physical supports for the plants to climb on like trellises and lattices can also be attached to these large pots.

Pot Types A to Z

St. Georges East (18) Big or small? The right pot will maximise your growing space and complement your plant’s growth habit.

Pots come in all shapes and sizes. It is important to choose pots that will maximise your growing space and complement your plant’s growth habit.

Choose a round pot for plants that form a ‘head’.
Round pots are ideal for plants that form a ‘head’ like Lettuces and Cabbages, or large bushy plants like Eggplants that need space to spread their leaves. One plant per pot will prevent overcrowding and make it easy to check your plant for pests and disease.

Bayamthinning_still Edibles that can grow close together can be planted in troughs

Troughs or rectangular pots can hold many more plants and are best used for edibles that can grow close together, like Bayam or Kang Kong. Remember to prune your plants regularly to allow air to circulate and to reduce pests and overcrowding within the pot.

A vertical green wall is a great way to save space.

You can also plant edibles in hanging pots or as a vertical green wall!

Small leafy vegetables like Kai Lan, Caixin and Lettuce do particularly well in these hanging pots as they have small root balls. This is a great way to save space and make gardening more accessible for gardeners who may have difficulty bending down or squatting.

More Than Just Pots

Pots are important and so are pot holes!

It is very important that the pots used to grow edible plants have drainage holes. This is because roots need to breathe. Submerging them in waterlogged soil for too long will cause suffocation. Pots with drainage holes will also allow you to gauge if you have watered enough as a well-watered pot will have runoff from the drainage holes.

Remember to break your compacted soil up to encourage plant growth.
Repeated watering and the gradual degradation of organic matter in the soil can leave your soil very compacted and hard. This will eventually reduce root growth of your edible plants. Refresh your soil periodically by breaking it up and adding organic matter like compost to encourage plant growth.

Finally, it is good practice to add adequate fertiliser and nutrients to your potted edibles to encourage more growth.

As a rule of thumb, leafy vegetables can be boosted with fertilisers high in nitrogen to encourage leaf growth, and fruiting edibles can be made more productive with fruiting fertilisers, which are high in potassium. Follow the manufacturer instructions for the best results.

Learning More

If you are a gardening newbie, visit NParksSG, our refreshed YouTube channel that serves as a one-stop repository for some 300 video resources. It covers topics ranging from types of soil needed for your garden and how to plant, harvest and even cook your edibles.

For additional resources on growing edible plants, please check out our list of Gardening Resources.

For more information about the flora and fauna found in Singapore, visit NParks Flora and Fauna Web.

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Text and photos by Jacqueline Chua

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Potful of Green Edibles

National Parks Board